Auto·Cue for Mastodon: A Local-First Mastodon Scheduler
Updated 4 November 2026
Mastodon rewards a consistent, human presence — but every instance is a little different, and the official apps aren’t built for planning a week ahead. Auto·Cue is a Mastodon scheduler that handles the quirks for you, from your own machine.
Your drafts, your calendar and your Mastodon access token stay on your device, in your operating system’s keychain. Auto·Cue runs no server that holds any of it; your content leaves your machine only when a post actually publishes.
What Auto·Cue does for Mastodon
- Any instance. Point Auto·Cue at your instance URL and authorise it there. It doesn’t assume everyone is on mastodon.social.
- Per-instance limits, read automatically. Character limits vary by instance, so Auto·Cue queries each instance’s settings at connection time and counts against the real limit.
- Content warnings, first-class. Set a CW on a post, or a sensible default per account — the way Mastodon culture expects.
- Visibility control. Public, unlisted, followers-only or direct, per post or as a per-account default.
- Queue and calendar. Batch-write and schedule across the week, instead of posting in the moment.
Own it, don’t rent it
Auto·Cue is a one-time purchase rather than a recurring subscription, and the AI that suggests posts runs locally — your content isn’t sent to a cloud model. It’s the local-first answer to the big cloud schedulers; the trade-offs are laid out honestly on our Buffer alternative and Hootsuite alternative pages.
Want the step-by-step?
This page is the overview. For the full walkthrough — connecting an instance, OAuth, and planning a month of toots — read the complete guide: How to schedule Mastodon posts.
Mastodon is one of several networks Auto·Cue covers. See them all on the platforms overview, or weigh it up on the pricing page.
Frequently asked questions
- Does Auto·Cue work with any Mastodon instance?
- Yes. You give Auto·Cue your instance URL and authorise it there. It queries the instance's own settings at connection time, so per-instance differences like the character limit are picked up automatically rather than assumed.
- Can Auto·Cue set content warnings and post visibility?
- Yes. Content warnings and visibility (public, unlisted, followers-only, direct) are first-class in Auto·Cue, and you can set a default per account in settings.
- Where does Auto·Cue store my Mastodon login?
- Your access token lives in your operating system's keychain on your own machine, never on a server. You authorise through your browser the usual OAuth way.
- Will Auto·Cue post to Mastodon when my computer is off?
- No. Scheduled posts go out while your machine is on and online, because Auto·Cue runs locally rather than from the cloud.